A Feast of Sorrow, Thanks, and Celebration

A week or two before Thanksgiving break, my class holds a feast. We see our humble classroom feast as a way of expressing sorrow, giving thanks, and celebrating differences.

For the feast, half my students dress as Pilgrims and half as Native Americans. I was told it was okay to make Native American headbands, since they do not have the same sacred meaning as headdresses. (I think I was supposed to use beads rather than feathers, though.) My students and I also talk at length beforehand about the injustices Native Americans have faced since the harvest feast, and how it is important to respect Native Americans just as we respect any other ethnic or religious group. I apologize if any of this is inappropriate or offensive, as I do not intend for it to be.

See my post "Thanksgiving Lessons: Plymouth, Pilgrims, and Native Peoples" to read what I have to say about avoiding Native American stereotypes.

The first thing I do is send out a letter to families, requesting donations of food, volunteers to help students prepare the food at school, and volunteers to cook the food and bring it back to school.

On the day before the feast, my students go to centers, and I assign volunteers to help them.

Everyone gets a chance to prepare part of the meal:

Clean and butter the turkey. . . .

Peel the potatoes. . . .

Mix the cookies and other sweet things.

Some volunteers take the food home to cook it and bring it back in the morning. I keep the food warm in roasting pans and crock-pots.

A week or two before Thanksgiving break, my class holds a feast. We see our humble classroom feast as a way of expressing sorrow, giving thanks, and celebrating differences.

For the feast, half my students dress as Pilgrims and half as Native Americans. I was told it was okay to make Native American headbands, since they do not have the same sacred meaning as headdresses. (I think I was supposed to use beads rather than feathers, though.) My students and I also talk at length beforehand about the injustices Native Americans have faced since the harvest feast, and how it is important to respect Native Americans just as we respect any other ethnic or religious group. I apologize if any of this is inappropriate or offensive, as I do not intend for it to be.

See my post "Thanksgiving Lessons: Plymouth, Pilgrims, and Native Peoples" to read what I have to say about avoiding Native American stereotypes.

The first thing I do is send out a letter to families, requesting donations of food, volunteers to help students prepare the food at school, and volunteers to cook the food and bring it back to school.

On the day before the feast, my students go to centers, and I assign volunteers to help them.

Everyone gets a chance to prepare part of the meal:

Clean and butter the turkey. . . .

Peel the potatoes. . . .

Mix the cookies and other sweet things.

Some volunteers take the food home to cook it and bring it back in the morning. I keep the food warm in roasting pans and crock-pots.